Shade for those who fly

[peyote2004]

I've been reading various posts about monkey huts and other shade structures. I'm interested in getting an idea of what the people who fly in hue for shade. I know many are a part of larger camps and villages that provide shade, but what about those who are not part of a larger group....

I will be flying into Reno, and thus subject to the size/weight restrictions of the airline. From Reno, I plan to take Burner Express. I'm not sure yet, weighed I will be spending a night in Reno, yet.

I'm trying to wrap my head around what to do for shade. I welcome any constructive suggestions you have. Also, if you have an image or link to what you are referring to, it would help, as I'm a visual person.

I was thinking about making something like the attached picture. 2 PVC poles (not sure of the length, maybe 6' but cut in half and joined with a connecting piece), eyebolts in the top of each pole, and string a rope across, and a couple of guide lines for stability. Slip the poles over a couple of pieces of rebar. The tarp can be adjusted by changing the length of the rope tying it down on each side, so it could be pulled more over the tent for morning shade, and more off the side to sit under during the day. If the wind gets too bad, it can be untied on one side, so it doesn't take flight. I haven't made my tent stakes yet, but I plan to use lag bolts, as suggested by Figjam in another thread.

[FossaFerox]

Unfortunately something that simple will most likely turn into a rather dangerous ball of tumbling plastic, cloth, and stakes. If you have the space to bring PVC poles in the first place a proper monkey hut isn't that much more difficult to pack. They don't have to be huge; they're very scalable.

[some seeing eye]

There are a few uses for shade: cover your tent or open cot to sleep 9AM-4PM, and have a front porch with some chairs for visitors.

Strongly suggest joining a camp which has that infrastructure and more.

But...Aluminet shade cloth, say a 14x20, piece is very light weight and would compress pack down to about 1' diameter by 3' long. Pick up poles rope hammer rebar at Home Despot. The other route is look at reflective stretch fabrics from Rosebrand in LA. If you sew make your tent a new ventilated silver sunfly backed up with some opaque fabric to within a few inches of ground and with a vent hole.

The other extreme solution is to get an old-style forest fire fighter micro shelter tent. The new ones are very single use.

Or take the hippie route and sleep in center camp, some other random shade or sleep at night and be up days. If it's your first year don't make it complicated.

IMO

[TT120]

Those don't look significant enough to me. The wind can pick up out there and it would tear those things to hell. As others have said, a monkey hut would be the easiest thing to bring. I built a small 3 rib one last year and was able to fit my tent inside it and still had a shaded "porch" area I could lounge around in during the heat of the day.

Joining a camp that has amenities like shade, kitchen, and shower is also an option. It's still early enough, you should be able to find something pretty easy.

[Lonesomebri]

Or take the hippie route and sleep in center camp, some other random shade or sleep at night and be up days. If it's your first year don't make it complicated. IMO

Exactly, just pick a nice location in the city, go make friends with your neighboring camps, and never leave.

You could also pool your resources with others flying in, sharing the burden and comfort of the shade shelter. And, yeah, if you come in otherwise prepared, bringing it, not a burden but a enthusiastic contributer, with a small footprint, you should be able to glom onto a larger camp and utilize their shade shelter. Even if you bring what's shown here, there are places, next to RVs, connected to others vehicles or structures, etc. where you could fit in, as long as you are personable and aren't a burden. But, yeah, flying in with minimum space... connect with others, even if informal camps.

[Elorrum]

Why is the first thing anyone mentions a monkey hut. o.k. they are great, but really? all the time?
tensioned tarps don't give a big amount of shade, but do work.

I used a kelty tripod shade for a couple years and it worked great.

[trilobyte]

Do some digging around on the boards, there are quite a few threads about different kinds of shade structures, many of which are pulled together without too much effort using supplies readily available in the Reno area.

[BBadger]

Why is the first thing anyone mentions a monkey hut. o.k. they are great, but really? all the time?
tensioned tarps don't give a big amount of shade, but do work.
I used a kelty tripod shade for a couple years and it worked great.

Those sound great actually, but I'm always suspicious that they'll end up like some Coleman Popup kites. Besides price and the DIY aspect, one benefit with the Monkeyhuts is that, because the design was for playa use, they have specific instructions and design characteristics that (usually) prevent them from becoming kites. It'd be good if there were some guides showing exactly what people need to do to make sure pop-up shade structures stay in place, instead of what is inside the instruction booklet that usually isn't for the conditions at BM.

[peyote2004]

Problem is, that I'm not sure I'll have time to do any shopping in Reno. It will depend on timing of flight/burner Express, and if I can afford a hotel room when the time comes.... Which I hope is the case, but the budget this year is gonna be tight.

[mudpuppy000]

Something like that might work if you use EMT instead of PVC pipe. Also if you can attach one end to a vehicle's roof rack it'll be much stronger. But yeah, a monkey hut is hard to beat.

Or join up with a camp that has some sort of community shade structure. You won't have your own private refuge, but huddling under a tiny tarp can be pretty miserable as I found out my first year. It's better to go out wandering the playa and sitting under an art installation or in one of the numerous "chill zones"

[FIGJAM]

The south side of anything will be shady because if the angle of the sun.

[Mia]

I was planning on doing a pitch tent out of tarps based on this post viewtopic.php?t=40542 though the taught line hitch looks tricky so I was also going to pack a boy scout ....ha ha

[Canoe]

I was planning on doing a pitch tent out of tarps based on this post ...

But what happens in a 70 mph wind.

And if going larger, don't do it with a larger tarp. Much larger forces. Do it with two tarps. Yes it lets a bit of sun through, and yes that sun will provide unwanted heat, but yes it will also let wind pressure out compared to a large tarp ripping or pulling the whole thing into going airborne.

Really really really pay attention to the following, to greatly lessen it whipping back and forth in the wind:

Two guy lines at the corners, or it's unstable.

Make sure you pay attention to the above.

p.s. Did I remember to tell you to pay attention to what Bob wrote?

[Mia]

I was planning on doing a pitch tent out of tarps based on this post ...But what happens in a 70 mph wind.

And if going larger, don't do it with a larger tarp. Much larger forces. Do it with two tarps. Yes it lets a bit of sun through, and yes that sun will provide unwanted heat, but yes it will also let wind pressure out compared to a large tarp ripping or pulling the whole thing into going airborne.

I was planning on using two tarps flapping the back parts over and extending the front (where the tent opens) so that I have a "porch" area. If you think my idea is faulted please tell me.

[FIGJAM]

Nothing "wrong" with your idea as long as the base structure will handle the weight and the wind.

Don't depend on the tents basic poles to do more than support the tent.

With our winds sometimes they're not even strong enough to do that.

[FossaFerox]

Mia, one of the MOST important things about the picture you posted is that it is NOT a tarp. It's shade cloth. Wind can go through it so it doesn't become a total kite.

Other key design features:

Angled poles tensioned down with guylines (should be two on each pole set at a 90-120 degree angle from eachother, opposite the line of tension the cloth provides).
Angled poles set on top of driven rebar to give them a solid footing.
Poles made of metal (rigid) rather than PVC (flexible)

As for tension structures in general, I dislike how much space they waste with the guylines you need to rig to tension the poles out away from the structure, not to mention if you don't do something to make your tension lines super visible at night you WILL seriously hurt someone.

I remember listening to a podcast after this year's Burn, might have been the Cracked.com one, where someone was recounting a story of watching their friend get clotheslined off his bike early in the week by someone's tension line. If memory serves it didn't seriously injure him but it ruined his burn, it put him in a cynical mood for the rest of the week.

[Popeye]

I tried this last year with a tarp and 1 1/2" PVC. I cut the uprights at about 4' and coupled them without glue so they could be transported on the bus easily. The first decent wind broke the couplings but it was guyed well enough that the tarp did not blow away. If I do this again I will g;ue schedule 80 couplings (grey instead of white) and shade cloth instead of a tarp.
Using a T or a cross on top makes it easy to add a cross piece and guy lines.
Florescent rope from the Home Despot and red duct tape flags increased the visibility of guy lines.

[Mia]

Mia, one of the MOST important things about the picture you posted is that it is NOT a tarp. It's shade cloth. Wind can go through it so it doesn't become a total kite.

Thank you SO MUCH.

[FossaFerox]

I'm here to help. The difference confused me when I was doing my initial research and I didn't want anyone else to be tripped up. You can do things with shadecloth that would be super dangerous with a tarp, though shadecloth doesn't provide 100% sunblock and is a TINY bit more expensive. These guys were where I was pointed as being the best supplier, though I haven't used them myself as I built a tarp bunker instead.

http://www.gothicarchgreenhouses.com/shade_cloth.htm

[Mojojita]

I don't know this for sure but someone will.... last year there was a camping area reserved specifically for people coming in on the Burner Express. Didn't that include some shade provided by the ORG? If so you may just need some aluminet to put over your tent.

[forty_eight]

I built a tarp bunker instead.

What is that?

Google wasn't very forthcoming.

[FossaFerox]

I built a tarp bunker instead.

What is that?

Google wasn't very forthcoming.

EMT conduit frame with tarp tops and angled tarps staked into the ground. Wind goes right over our structure and it's staked out to hell with ZERO exposed guy lines. There are 300+ feet of rebar securing that puppy to the ground. Super cozy inside as well.

[forty_eight]

^ lol, just came across that picture on another thread! that looks super legit.

i used a 12x20 conduit structure with vertical tarp walls. i was pretty concerned it would be a sail, but things were mellow last year - i gather.

considering adding a 'porch' but will at least look at adding some angled walls

---

for the OP:

i also noticed some really minimalist structures that seemed to hold up

one thing to consider is how 'permanent' you need your shade to be and how flexible you can or want to be about managing it

do you need a place to retreat during the day or are you just looking to get a few extra hours in the tent in the AM?

that will determine some of the criteria for your shade

one thing i noticed is that eplayans prepare and instruct preparation to an exceptional degree

i saw people who looked like they never camped a day in their life

and they seemed to have survived ... not counseling lazy prep, just some context as to the rabid planners that inhabit eplaya

[Popeye]

I don't know this for sure but someone will.... last year there was a camping area reserved specifically for people coming in on the Burner Express. Didn't that include some shade provided by the ORG? If so you may just need some aluminet to put over your tent.

There was a shade structure at the main bus stop. Everyone treated it like a bus stop and it didn't seem like anyone camped there, just a place to get out of the sun when being picked up or dropped off.

[peyote2004]

I camp quite regularly, but don't have to deal with high winds, and am usually in wooded areas, so shade isn't a big deal.

I'm thinking shade mainly to extend sleeping time, although I'm an early riser, I would like the option of catching a few extra Zzzzs. Back in '04, I camped at a festival in Nebraska. I remember that by 8am, you couldn't stand being in the tent, because it was so hot, and I know the playa will be worse than that.

[theCryptofishist]

Few places are worse than Nebraska...

[NikkiG]

Join a free camp with a decent shade structure, it will make your life so much easier and you will meet a lot of interesting people. If you have issues email me. BTW, the sun will roast your tent without a proper shade structure over it. If you decide not to bring a shade structure, camp close to an RV. They are good at blocking the wind and the sun. Whatever you do, never ever camp next to a shiny yurt. They tend to reflect the sun like MF and it will roast your tent. J


FYI The best time to view things around the playa is 7am-12pm. From 12pm-3pm you might want to find shade, 3pm -3am Hang out around town and party and 3am-7am sleep.
The artery tours are butt early in the morning so make sure you sign up for a tour DAYS in advance. Trust me on that one.

[Divreon]

FossaFerox,

I'm looking into something like your image of the tarp bunker, but smaller. Yes, I'll remember to use shadecloth for any walls I'll put in.

The thing is, I need to be able to fly with it. So, the idea is to take a bunch of smaller metal tubes, with drilled holes, and use larger tubes and bolts as connecters to make longer tubes once I arrive. I'm planning on abusing media credentials to get it onto the plane as "Video Equipment" even if it's well overweight and given that it's a bunch of tubes and reflective material, they won't know the difference. The question is, do you see any reason why smaller connected posts wouldn't work as well?

[forty_eight]

^ Maybe buy the conduit in Reno?

Bolted sections just seems like they'd have potential to sway and shift which could lead to failure.

I didn't have problems using solid tarps as vertical walls, FWIW.

Winds were light, tho .. and there was a contingency plan that involved removing walls if sail effect presented itself.

[andy]

Remember, if you are flying in you can always UPS your heavy stuff ahead to a hotel in Reno if you're planning to spend the night there. If not, you can send stuff to UPS stores "hold for pickup" but you would need to cab it over there.

Also, there are shared containers from many cities in the country where you can ship your shade.